Grimsdyke School

Highlights from Latest Inspection

Main findings

Grimsdyke is an outstanding school. Pupils are proud of their school and most parents and carers hold it in high regard. One commented, 'We have been very pleased with Grimsdyke School and how the teachers encourage and motivate our children to learn.'

This was typical of the views of others. Good at its last inspection, the school has consolidated and built on its many strengths. The headteacher has led the drive for further improvement and the governing body and leaders at all levels have high aspirations for the school which is reflected in its everyday life.

Thorough self-evaluation enables them to have a good understanding of the school's strengths and to tackle weaknesses successfully.... Issues from the last inspection have been addressed effectively and pupils achieve outstandingly well. Consequently, the school has an outstanding capacity to maintain and build even further on its improvements.

Pupils' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development is outstanding. The school is an extremely harmonious community with pupils from a wide range of backgrounds getting on very well together. Pupils are unfailingly friendly and polite and behave extremely well.

They feel very safe in school and have great confidence in the adults around them. Walking down the corridor with the lead inspector, one younger pupil, after holding the door open, commented 'I love this school because you feel very safe'. This was a sentiment expressed by all the pupils spoken to by inspectors.

It is a reflection of the excellent levels of care, guidance and support provided for them and the considerable lengths that are taken to ensure they are safe and protected. Pupils really enjoy their education largely because of a rich and vibrant curriculum which provides them with memorable experiences, for example in music and sport. The latter helps pupils to adopt healthy lifestyles extremely well, and is indicative of the excellent partnerships which considerably enhance the school's work.

This commitment to enrichment is reflected in the school's national awards. Pupils' attainment in English and mathematics at the end of Year 6 is high. Together with their very positive attitudes to learning, good skills in information and communication technology (ICT) and above average attendance, this ensures that they are extremely well prepared for the next stage of their education and the world beyond.

Children get off to a good start in the lively and stimulating Early Years Foundation Stage. Thereafter, good teaching enables all pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities and those from a wide variety of backgrounds, to make consistently good progress. Teachers have high expectations of their pupils and generally plan well to meet their wide-ranging needs.

Occasionally, they talk for too long, especially at the beginning of lessons, and do not give pupils sufficient opportunities to discuss their ideas and to be fully engaged in their learning. Pupils' good progress is also supported very well by effective systems to track their progress. This enables school leaders to identify any potential underachievement at an early stage and put support in place to enable those at risk to catch up.

The quality of teaching is monitored rigorously through a good range of strategies and there is a successful, shared commitment to improve provision and outcomes for pupils. The curriculum teams, for example, are knowledgeable and enthusiastic and support the headteacher and senior leaders very effectively to embed the school's ambition and drive improvements. The governing body supports and challenges leaders unflinchingly.

In consequence, the school is very effective in achieving its mission of 'learning and achieving together'. By way of illustration, one parent commented, 'We are repeatedly complimented on how well our children think, read and speak when we visit relatives and friends.'

information about their attainment and progress.

Inspectors also considered the

views of staff, pupils and 220 parents and carers expressed in their responses to questionnaires. The inspection team reviewed many aspects of the school's work. It looked in detail at a number of key areas.

The reason for the dip in attainment and progress in writing in 2011 and whether pupils are making good progress in this area. The extent to which all groups of pupils from different backgrounds and with different needs are achieving equally well. The extent to which attendance has improved and whether the improvement is likely to be maintained.

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